


On Your Side

by 365daysoffeels



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Emperor Hux, F/M, Reader-Insert, empress Reader - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-26
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2018-09-27 01:38:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 19,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9944687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysoffeels/pseuds/365daysoffeels
Summary: After your father's death, it is your turn to ascend to the throne and decide who's side you are on, the Resistance - who think you are nothing more than a naive child playing empress - or the First Order - amongst whom you find your childhood friend and first love.





	1. Prologue

Eufornis Major, one of the planets known as the Core Worlds, one of the richest planets in the galaxy. A urban planet that was usually known for its nontypical calmness. While most planets were buzzing with this amount of residents, Eufornis Major was known for its tranquility. Most residents thanked the emperor and his strict hand for it, while others thought it was the beauty of the late empress and the ruler’s daughter, that kept troublemakers in a peaceful daze. These day however, everything had been turned upside down. The emperor had died, leaving his daughter to rule.

 

The tranquility was replaced by sadness, grief and the occasional troublemaker, who thought now would be the time to replace the monarchy. Their little uprisings were put down quicker than they would have hoped to, when the First Order arrived. The visit had been scheduled months prior, but now, while you were pacing inside the palace walls, you were amazed by the perfect timing. You had been looking forward to the visit, hoping that it would be the First Order’s general, instead of their angst-inducing commander, who would set foot on Eufornis. Not that you had anything to fear of the First Order, they were your allies after all and you were aware that you needed them now more than anything. You needed them to establish yourself as ruler of Eufornis Major and prevent any sort of resistance. You heard them approach before you could see them, it almost sounded like a whole army was coming. Leaning against an archway, you spotted the General easily, his bright ginger hair being a stark contrast to the while buildings and green plants. You could see him marching in front of a handful of stormtroopers, the delegation making their way down the path to palace.

 

You had always loved your families palace on Eufornis Major, granted it was a bit smaller than the family residence on one of the moons, but its architecture had always impressed you. For someone visiting for the first time, the palace must seem rather small and build in a rather dangerous place. A single - still rather impressive - tower was placed on the edge of the cliffs, water from Eurofnis’ biggest river flowing down, surrounding the palace with water. A circle of greenery surrounding the tower, two half circles framing it, leaving enough space for ships to land. While all this had the potential to seem rather unimpressive for a planet as rich as Eufornis, on the first look most seemed to miss the biggest part of the palace, which was carved into the cliff, continuing underneath the tower and water, giving the palace residents a spectacular view over the water and an interesting view of the waterfall. The palace was like a small oasis on the otherwise mostly urban planet, the turquoise water being a stark contrast to the cities white buildings and greenery that seemed to find its way on every building.

 

You stood on the stairs, watching as the General strode down the way through the palace gardens. Your eyes locked and excitement grew in your belly. It had been years since you had seen the General - back then of course, he had not been a general. It took a lot of effort for you not to run towards him and greet him like you used to, longing to be back in his arms. You knew better now and knew that it would be inappropriate and you could already hear your advisor scolding you for just thinking about it. You could however not help the small smile that had taken over your face, for you were glad to have your friend back by your side. “General.” You greeted, while he bowed his head slightly. “I hope your journey was not too tiring.” You indulged in the polite chitchat - only to please your advisor- when Hux fell into step with you. “It was a quite pleasant journey, your highness.”

 

As the day continued your reached a point when you felt about ready to strange your advisor. Both you and Hux had tried to find a moment to yourselves, but Baniss - the advisor - seemed to either always find the two of you or would just stress you to sit down for a proper meeting. Finally you had enough, excusing yourself, your made your way to your quarters. You had enough of that old man for one day. Granted he had been your father’s advisor for longer than you had been alive, but ever since your father had died, he had not left your side, bugging you about who you should make an alliance with and most importantly he tried to get you to back away from an alliance with the First Order, even though he had urged your father to make this alliance. Although this did confuse you at first, you now had a feeling that it was purely based on the man's dislike for Hux and more importantly his hatred for Captain Phasma. It seemed like the only person he tolerated from the First Order's triumvirate was Commander Ren. 

 

You made your way onto your balcony, if you would stretch out your arm, you’d be able to touch the water of the waterfall. Reaching your hand out to feel the cold sensation, you were unprepared for the voice coming from behind you. “He is quite persistent.” Being startled by the sudden presence, you lost your balance, nearly tipping over the railing, if it wouldn’t be for the arm wrapping around your waist. Turning your head slightly, your eyes were met with a pair of very familiar blue eyes. “That is one way of calling it.” You mumbled, watching as his brows furrowed for a moment. “I’d call him a damn pain.” A smile grew on the ginger’s face and you couldn’t help but smile as well. Turning your whole body to face him, he removed his arm around your waist and took a few steps back, as if he just remembered his manners or the difference in their status. You took a moment to take him in, he looked very handsome indeed, dressed in the First Order uniform and his hair slicked back. A small smirk playing on his lips, “It is considered rude to stare, your highness.” The small smirk turned into proper one, when your cheeks started to become a lot more rosy than before.


	2. The Delegation

You were awake by knocking on your door, panicked you looked to the side only to realise that the ginger general must have slipped out at one point during the night. A sigh of relief escaped your lips, before you pushed yourself out of your bed and slipped on a robe. You took your time, knowing who would be on the other side of the door: Baniss. No other fool dared to knock on your door, before one of your maids had been in to wake you and even then most waited until you were dressed and ready in the throne room or the study. But not Baniss, the old advisor was thinking too highly of himself and pushed boundaries wherever he could.

 

Opening the door, you glared down the old man, not hiding your annoyance in anyway. “What do you want?” You barked, making your maid behind him flinch. “A delegation of the senate had arrived, your highness. They are asking to see you.” He informed you, while his eyes strayed from you to your room behind him. You were fighting the smirk that was growing on your face, when you realised he was looking for any trace of Hux. Not that he would find one. Between you and the perfectionist that was the general, Baniss could probably search your room with a magnifying glass and he still wouldn’t find a single thing. “I will see them in the throne room, once I’m ready.” You grumbled, before you waved your maid into your quarters and closed the door into your advisor’s face. “Fool” you hissed under your breath, before you approached your closet. You pointed out the dress you wanted to wear, before your turned away to your desk to write a note. You were scribbling down the words quickly, while your maid laid out your dress and accessories to go with it.

 

Once you were dressed, you moved over to your desk, folding the note, you motioned your maid over. “Ailla, I need you to deliver this to general Hux. Don’t let anyone read this note, especially not Baniss. If you can’t find the general, hand it over to captain Phasma.” Ailla gave you a nod, before she slipped out of your quarters. Taking a deep breath, you made you way to the throne room. You were aware that this was not really a delegation of the senate but more a delegation of the resistance. Hux and you had talked about this the night before, you were the new empress of one of the core worlds, the resistance would see that as a new chance to make an alliance. Obviously though, they could not officially send their own delegation to a planet that had a long history of being allies with the Galactic Empire and now the First Order.

 

You had barely set down in the silver throne, when one of the guards opened the door and Baniss and the delegation walked into the room. The delegation consisted of three members. A mon calamari and two humans. “Your highness, may I introduce you to U.O. Statura, Gial Ackbar and Caluan Ematt.” You tilted you head in greeting, while the three males bowed. “It is a pleasure to meet you, your highness.” Statura piped up. “As it is a pleasure to meet you.” You indulge into the pleasentries, while your eyes spotted the general sneaking into the throne room using the side door. You had not been the only to spot him, Baniss seemed to immiedelty tense, when he saw the ginger enter the room. “Your beauty is even more breathtaking than rumours let on.” Ematt spoke up, while you offered him a smile as thank you. “What can I do for you and the senate?” You had enough of the idle talk and wanted to get down to business. Ackbar was about to answer you, when he was cut off by Baniss. “My lady, the delegation informed me about the matter and I am convinced this is a matter that should be discussed between you, your highness, and the delegation.” His eyes flickered over to Hux, who was leaning against the wall simply observing.

 

With his statement, Baniss had drawn the attention to Hux and you could see the three males growing uneasy, when they realised the general of the First Order was present. “I’m afraid, your highness, your advisor is right. The senate wished to bring this matter to the empress of Eufornis Major and to the empress alone.” Hux nearly rolled his eyes at their theatrics, before his eyes locked with yours, with a quick nod from you, Hux tilted his head in a goodbye and left the throne room.

 

“Now that we are alone, speak.” You turned back to the delegation, who seemed a bit more at ease, now that the ginger was gone. A small smile was playing on your lips, when you realised how uncomfortable and scared his present alone made some beings. “The senate wishes to enquire for an alliance with Eufornis Major.” Gial Ackbar stated, coming straight to the point. “This is a rather bold enquiry, seeing as Eufornis is already in an alliance with the First Order.” You stated, looking at Baniss, who stared back at you defiantly. “The alliance had been made when my father was still alive, what makes you think it would just simply throw it away now?” You questioned them, staring down at the three males. “That’s exactly what the senate has been thinking, your highness, the alliance was formed between your father and the First Order, but now your father is dead, maybe it is time for the alliance to be as well?”

 

* * *

 

Hux had retreated to your quarters, once he had left the throne room. Once the door had closed behind him, he had indeed rolled his eyes at the foolishness of the resistance. What made them think they could simply walk into the throne room and win you over. Nothing the resistance could offer you would make you betray the First Order or him. He had been sitting on one of the sofas reading a book, when Ailla entered your quarters. “General.” The brown haired woman squeak, before she clutched her heart. “I’m sorry, sir, I was not expecting anyone to be here.” Hux simply looked up from his book, while Ailla was still staring at the floor.

 

Ailla knew about you and Hux and had always known, she was one of the people you trusted most in the palace. It was not odd for her to find Hux in your quarters, she had found him there many times, when the two of you had been younger. Back then she had scolded the pair of you, condemning it as a bad habit and this bad habit seemed to stick. “I’m sorry, Ailla, I did not mean to make you jump.” Hux had a small teasing smirk on his face, while the older woman shot him a disapproving look, before she entered your walk-in closet. Silence filled the room once more and Hux turned back to his book.

 

The silence didn’t last for long, as you opened the door and slammed it shut. Ailla peered out from the closet, but once she saw your livid face, she quickly ducked back into the closet. Your eyes settled on Hux on the sofa for a second, while he looked at you in mild surprise, but still in his usual calm manner. A groan left your lips, before you stalked out onto the balcony. You wanted to scream and throw something, but you wouldn’t do so with Hux and Ailla present. You were leaning on the banister, when Hux approached from behind. “So are you and the resistance allies now?” He had a teasing smirk on his face, when he leaned on the banister next you, his back to the stunning view. You shot him a quick glare. “They are not what enrages me.” You growled, a vision of tossing Baniss off your balcony filling your head and painting a smile on your face. “I take it it is the advisor than.” You answered Hux with a quick nod. “I told your father to get rid of him years ago.” You gave Hux a look, before turning around to face your quarters as well. “Maybe it is time to finally do so.” You turned to face the ginger, taking a step closer to him. “Tell me, how busy are the Knights of Ren?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to make a cross over with my Kylo Ren story, but I realised that Hux got someone else in that, so no cross over


	3. The Advisor and the Knights

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, there wasn't an update last week something happened that made me rather upset and I just wanted to relax and forget about it over the weekend.

You were tapping your nails against your armrest impatiently. Baniss was in the process of giving you some ‘advise’, you however felt that the word ‘scolding’ suited the situation much better. Apparently, you had given the delegation the impression, that due to personal feelings there was no chance for an alliance between Eufornis and the senate. You had to refrain from rolling your eyes, as Baniss insisted on another meeting with delegation. You thought, however that the delegation was right - there was no chance of an alliance between you and them. The only person, who did not seem to want to accept that was Baniss and his persistence was putting you more and more on edge. You did not know how to handle the advisor, you did not necessarily want to take his life, for just giving horrible advice and not knowing his place, but you also knew that it could not go on like this. If anything about his handling of you was made public, your reputation would suffer severely - who would want an empress that allows people to push her around.

 

Hux had told you the same thing, when he had been waiting for you in your quarters the night before. You had to put the man back into his place and perhaps it was time to appoint a new advisor. Moving your eyes back to Baniss, you could see his mouth still moving, the man was still waffling on about the senate and the resistance, trying to convince you to join an alliance with them. “Stop.” Pinching the bridge of your nose, you rose from the throne, taking a few steps down. “I will not hear another word about this.” Your eyes met Baniss, who seemed almost taken back. “We will not form an alliance with the senate. I feel like I have to remind you that Eufornis already has an ally: the First Order.” A glare took over the older man’s face, while he defiantly kept eye contact with you. “We will not abandon this alliance, no matter what you have to say about it. This is my decision. We are done here” You threw one last glare at Baniss, before you left the throne room.

 

Footsteps echoed behind you and for his own sake, you hoped it wasn't Baniss, because sending one of the Knights of Ren after him sounded more and more appealing. “We are not done.” You turned to face the advisor with look that could kill. “Excuse me? How dare you?” Unaffected by your words - or your glare - Baniss came closer, he advanced towards you more and more until he had you cornered against the wall. “You are nothing but a little girl and without my support you will never succeed as empress of Eufornis. I leave and this planet will burn I guarantee you that little girl.” You stared at the man in disbelief, how dare he speak to you in such way. “So remember this, you will do as I say and you can continue playing empress.” He growled, pushing even closer to you. “Now send home this First Order scum.” He did not move back, instead he was waiting for a reaction from you - he waited for you to agree. When you didn’t he raised his arm, pressing it against your throat. “I need you to agree with me, little girl. Tell that ginger rat to leave and never to return.” When his demand was once again met with silent, he put more pressure on your throat. “Break the general’s heart, your highness.”

 

“Is there a problem?” A metallic voice sounded from down the corridor. Both your and Baniss’ eyes snapped towards the voice and a sense of relief filled you. “I advise you take a step away from her highness, advisor.” The chrome of Phasma’s amour reflected the light, as she walked closer to you and the advisor. “I was just doing my job - giving her advice.” He threw a glare at Phasma, shot you a warning look, before he walked away. Pushing yourself away from the wall, you brushed off your dress. “Thank you, captain” Your voice was quiet, so no one would overhear, but in the quiet corridor it still sounded louder than you would have liked. “There is no need to thank me. The general send me to look for you, your highness.” You gave a quick nod, still a bit shaken up about Baniss's behaviour.

 

You had no doubts now, Baniss had to go away and not in the rather friendly way of banishing him. No, you figured simply banishing him would not do the trick, he would find his way back and you did not want to think about what would happen if he did. You quietly followed Phasma, your head consumed by possibilities and ways to make that foul man go away. So consumed by your thoughts, you had not realised when Phasma had stopped, her voice causing you to jump. “Here we are.” You gave a quick nod and another thank you, before she pushed the doors open and you entered. You found yourself in Hux’s quarters, he was sitting behind the desk, working on his datapad. Opposite him sat a figure clad in black armour and another was leaning against the wall behind him . “General.” You were surprised that your voice had a slight tremor in it, causing you to curse yourself, to be so shaken up. Your voice had caused all of them - Hux and the black clad figures - to turn to face you.

 

“Empress, may I introduce you to Notaka and Naiad?” You have them both a nod, which they returned. “Ren send them.” Hux informed you, while he put his datapad back onto his desk. “General, may I have a word in private.” Your request was met with a nod and with the wave of his hand, the two knights left the room. “I want him gone.” Your words caused a look of confusion on the general’s face, unsure what you were referring to. “He cornered me just now. Demanding that I join forces with the Resistance and send - and I quote - ‘this First Order scum’ away. So he can rule, while I can keep on ‘playing’ empress.” Your fists were clenched and you could feel your whole body shaking with anger. You could see the anger flashing in Hux’s eyes, as he pushed himself out of his chair. “Let’s get rid of him then.” He almost sounded bored, but the look in his eyes told you that he was furious beyond belief.

 

“How?”


	4. Goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long break, I'm back now and it's easter so there will be more updates (fingers crossed)

Notaka rose from his seat, when you and the general approached, meanwhile Naiad joined his comrade, while the two stood in front of Hux’s desk with their arms crossed. “I asked the two knights to join us here on Eufornis, for a very good reason, your highness.” Hux send youa teasing smile, while the pair of you stopped in front of the knights. “Oh is that so, general?” You looked back Hux, before glancing back at the two knights, who threw each other a knowing look, which earned them a glare from Hux. “Commander send us to take care of a certain problem.” It was the younger one, with white pearly hair who had spoken up, a cheeky grin on his face. “Or a certain someone.” The other with dark grey hair piped up. You nodded your head, before your eyes flitted back to Hux, when he spoke up. “This man is no fool, we will have to plan it excessively and will have to execute it with the uttermost care.” His tone had been serious, causing the two young knights to straighten up and their smiles to disappear. “We can’t have this being linked to either to the First Order, the Knights of Ren or her highness.” The two knights gave a nod in agreement. “You can leave now. I will discuss this matter with you later.”

 

Even after the knights had left, you were still standing before his desk, while the general had walked around you to face you. “Not long now.” Hux gave an agreeing nod. “No, soon enough there won’t be a snake at your feet, trying to get you to do their biding.” He took a step closer, his hand coming up to rest on your cheek. “No, my dear, soon you will have full reign over this planet.” Leaning closer, he planted a kiss on your lips. You wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling the ginger even closer. “My empress.” He breathed against your lips, before he kissed you again.

 

After a moment, the sound of a knock filled the room, causing the two of you to pull away from each other. After a moment to gather yourselves, the general called out: “Who is it?” “Her highness advisor, Baniss, General.” Both of you tensed at the sound of his voice, before you shot the general a panicked look. Hux shot you a look, before nodding towards his ensuite, with a nod you turned to hide in his refresher. Leaving the door open the tiniest bit, your curiosity had gotten the better of you. You could hear the door being opened, before your could hear the sound of footsteps. Peeking out, you could see Hux returning to his desk, while Baniss entered the room, coming to a stop in front of Hux who was leaning against his desk.

 

“How can I help you, Baniss?” Hux’s tone was casually, although a bit tense, but you were sure that Baniss couldn’t hear it. “Her highness send me to discuss a serious matter with you, General.” Hux gave a nod, while you had a look of confusion growing on your face. You had discussed nothing with that slug, that would have been of Hux’s concern. In fact you had discussed nothing with him. “You see, general, her highness has expressed her desire to join in an alliance with the resistance, but she also admitted that she did not think it right to break of this alliance with you.” Hux gave Baniss a blank look, but in reality, all he wanted to do was give the advisor a piece of his mind, or call the knights back in. “You see, her highness, seems to think she has to be loyal to you, due to your history. But you must see, general, that you will have to let her down to make her see sense. She seems to think that there is a chance that the pair of you might reunite.” You could see Hux growing more and more tense, while Baniss kept chatting about something he had no idea about.

 

“I mean surely, General, you agree. There is no chance of the two of you reuniting. You are a highly regarded general now, you would not go back to a lowly empress, when you could have a queen.” You saw Hux’s fist clenching and you knew there he would soon reach a breaking point and you knew that afterwards the knight most likely wouldn’t be needed any more. “Surely you agree, General.” Baniss voice, snapped both you and Hux out of your thoughts, but before Hux could reply, you stepped out of the refresher and approached the two males. “History has a funny thing of repeating itself.” Your voice made the two of them look over to you. Hux had a smirk on his face, while colour seemed to vanish from Baniss’s face. “Your highness.” He stuttered out, his eyes growing wide, when you joined Hux and leaned against his desk.

 

“Oh dear, Baniss, you don’t look so well.” You teased leaning closer to Hux, while Baniss seemed to be frozen in place. “You have gone rather silent, Baniss” Hux joined in, while Baniss seemed to have been snapped out of his moment and was growing rather angry rather quickly. He took a step towards the pair of you, causing both you to jump to your feet and Hux to take a step in front of you. “I would think wisely about my next move, if I was you.” Hux voice was low and threatening, causing Baniss to growl and take another step forwards. His gaze had fallen on you, while you shot him a glare. “This alliance has to end!” He bellowed, taking another step forward, so was nearly chest to chest with the general. “I will not stand for this! The First Order will fail and Eufornis Major will not be part of it!” He was shouting at this point, which at first had made you flinch, while Hux was just giving him a blank look.

 

“I will not stand for it!” Baniss barked again, he lunged forward, wrapping his hands around the general’s neck. Hux stumbled back until he hit the table. Neither of you had expected the advisor to lung for Hux, all of you had expected you to be the man’s target. You had stepped out of the way and were momentarily frozen, before it all sunk in, looking around the room, all you could see was the letter opener. Not hesitating another moment, you lunged forward embedding the letter opener in Baniss back. The advisor frozen for a second, before he stumbled back, he looked at you with wide eyes and took a step forward.

 

Baniss was about to lung for you, when he was was rooted to the ground, the doors were pushed open and Notaka and Naiad made their way into the room. Notaka was holding out his hand towards the advisor, keeping him frozen in place. Naiad approached the general, helping him back to his feet, while he was holding his throat. You looked at Baniss who was still glaring at you, even with his unmoving body. Taking a step closer to the man, you reached around and pulled the letter opener from his back. “Let’s finish this.”


	5. Gone

Baniss body was twitching on the floor, while you were standing above him. The puddle of blood that was leaking from his wounds was steadily growing, while you kept watching him. Almost in a trance, you were frozen in place, astounded and scared of your own actions. Just a few month ago you had never thoughts that you would kill someone, not intentionally, but here you were standing over the corpse of your previous advisor and neither of the knights or the general had done it. It had been your own hands holding the letter opener, when you had pulled it from his back - a survivable wound - and plunged it into his ribs at an angle, that made it unlikely for the man to survive.

 

The sound of another set of steps filled the room, causing Hux and the two knights to turn to the door. Not waiting for the intruder to appear, Hux lunged forward, grasping your hand, he pulled you from your trance, causing the letter opener to drop from your hands, the sound of the metal hitting the marble, caused a shiver to go down your spin. Hux pulled you behind him, ready to protect you from whoever came through that door. The knights were facing the door, waiting to take care of the intruder.

 

Reality slowly started to sink in and you clutched Hux’s hand tighter. Shuffling closer to the ginger, you twisted your hand into the back of his uniform, burying your face in his back. You could feel him twisting around, glancing at you, you did however miss the concerned look on his face. He was torn, he wanted to comfort you, but at the same time, he wanted to protect your from whoever was going to come through that door. He gave your hand a squeeze of reassurance, just when a copper haired girl bounced around the corner, a lollipop in her mouth. She stopped at the sight in front of her, before a giggle escaped her mouth. “Seems like the deed is done.” Naiad and Notaka had visible relaxed once they had laid eyes on the girl, while Hux although a bit more relaxed still seemed to be a bit on edge. Meanwhile you were left in the dark not entirely sure if this was going to be the end of you or not.

 

“Rine, time and place.” Naiad scolded, while the girl inflated a bit, sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. Notaka rolled his eyes at the copper haired girl’s antics, before he turned to face the general and yourself. Hux had meanwhile loosed the grip he had had on your hand, but had not released it or stepped away from you. “Take care of the body.” Hux ordered, his voice controlled and sure of himself like always. The three knights gave a quick nod, before they started talking amongst themselves. While the knights were occupied, Hux turned to face you.

 

A displeased look was etched on his face, when he looked at your paler than usual complexion and your shaking frame. Glancing over you, he frowned before he pulled you into the refresher. He left your side to turn the water one, while you looked down at your bloody hands and the stains it had left on your dress. “It was a gift.” You mumbled, catching the general’s attention. Hux turned to look at you in question and concern, afraid that the last few hours had more of an affect on you than he had first thought. “The dress it was given to me by the Queen of Naboo.” Hux gave an understanding nod, before he grabbed two towels. “I figured they only gave it to me so I would be more likely to cooperate.” Hux placed the towels down, before he came to a stop in front of you.

 

“How did that work for them?” Hux had a small smile playing on his lips, he knew very well how that bribe ended. “Not well, there was another party who offered a better bribe. I kept the dress though.” You gave a Hux a small smile, which he returned, before he placed a kiss on your temple. “Clean off the blood, I will take care of the dress.” Placing another kiss on your forehead. He stepped behind you, his fingers running up your spin, before they reached the top of the lacing. Shiver after shiver was running down your spin and goosebumps covered your skin. Once he reached the bottom of the lacing, he placed a kiss on the back of your neck, before both of you let go of the dress. You stepped out of the fabric, took your crown off and stepped under the water.

 

Hux hesitated for a moment, before he grabbed the dress and crown and left the refresher. Once he stepped back into his quarters, he noticed the absence of the body. He was glad that Ren had sent Naiad, although the knight was young, the other two were much younger and more immature than the dark grey haired boy. Hux had expected them to faff around - especially Rine and Notaka - but instead Naiad seemed to have taken the lead and the body was gone, all that remained was a deep red puddle on the white marble floor. Glancing at the dress, Hux let it fall into the puddle, using the already stained fabric to clean up as much of the blood as possible, before he chucked the dress into the fire in the open fire place.

 

He had considered to properly clean the rest of the puddle, but he would not take to such a tedious task, when he could give it to one of the knights. Looking down at the smudges of the red, his train of thoughts was interrupted when Notaka entered the quarters once more. “Naiad and Rine are taking care of it.” He stopped in front of Hux waiting for any other orders. “Good, in that case you can take care of that.” Hux pointed down to the mostly wiped up blood, before he turned away. He missed the glare Notaka send him, before the knight got to work.


	6. Reminiscence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right so in this chapter there is a bit of history about both reader & Hux and some it is not canon, but I just thought this way it fits the story better. 
> 
> Also for all those who have been reading Young Gods, you might be happy to know that I'm writing a mini series for it, which takes place just after Starkiller base was destroyed! There are already two chapters up, so go check it out!

The awkward atmosphere was interrupted, when you stepped out of the refresher. Dressed in Hux’s bathrobe and nothing else, you drew both male’s attention. Hux threw the young knight a glare, which caused the force sensitive knight to focus back on cleaning, while you gave Hux a shaky but still teasing smile. “Come” Hux took your hand, before leading you to the door. Once opened the ginger peered outside, checking that the corridor was empty, before he guided you down towards your own quarters. A sense of dread filled you at the thought of being on your own in your quarters, you didn’t want Hux to leave.

 

When you entered, you half expected Ailla to be around, but relief washed over you, when you realised that the old maid was not present. Slowly you let go of Hux’s hand, before you made your way to the balcony. Taking in the stunning view that was Eufornis Major, you jumped slightly, at the feeling of Hux’s hand placed on your waist. “That resistance scum is still here.” You breathed, while the general simply nodded. “They will leave, once they realise that Baniss is gone and therefore their only chance of an alliance between Eufornis and the resistance.” Hux assured you, before he leaned his head against the back of your shoulder. “And if they won’t leave peacefully, we will take care of them.”

 

* * *

 

You woke up the next morning and were glad to be in your own quarters. The night had been a restless one, while you still tried to get to terms with what you had done, although you didn’t regret it one bit. Hux had not left your side for a second, which had been of great comfort for you, but now that it was morning, he had disappeared as usual, before Ailla would find him - even though that maid was more than used to find the ginger in your rooms. For a change it was the sun that had woken you, its light filling your rooms and making the marble look a beautiful golden shade. There was no knocking from an annoying advisor, just silence. You sighed and let yourself fall back down on your bed, ready to enjoy the quiet for as long as it would last.

 

Which turned out to be not very long. Frantic knocks soon replaced the silence, causing a groan to leave your lips, before you called for whoever had knocked to enter. Ailla rushed in, stress clearly written all over her face, while she spoke to you with a speed that made your head spin. She was followed by Hux, who was as calm as ever, leaving the maid to give him suspicious glances. “What is going on?” You finally spoke up, when Ailla had stopped talking for a second. “It’s Baniss, your highness.” She glanced back at Hux, who was leaning against your desk, before she turned back to you. “He has vanishes, no one knows where he is and he was not seen leaving the palace.” She continued, her hands picking at her nails in a nervous manner. “So go and find him. He can’t just simply vanish.” Ailla nodded at your order, before she rushed out of your rooms.

 

“You should not be in here.” You addressed Hux once, the frantic maid was gone. “And why is that?” Hux replied taking a drag from his cigarette. “I’m not descent, if the court would know they would have a field day.” You covered yourself more with your duvet, but threw the general a teasing smile, which caused a matching smirk to grow on his face. “Oh indeed, it would be a scandal, your highness.” He stepped closer, tossing his fag into the ashtray on your desk, before he came to a stop on the foot of your bed. “Her royal highness, Empress of Eufornis Major, seduced by a lowly son of a Lieutenant Commander of the Galactic Empire.” He leaned his hands against your bed, while you shuffled to your knees, coming closer to your beloved general. “Not so lowly anymore now. Now he is the general of the First Order, the right hand man of Supreme Leader Snoke.” Your wrapped your arms around his neck, leaning your forehead against his. “Don’t let my father’s word influence you, even after his death.” You whispered, before pressing your lips against his. “He never deemed me good enough for you.” He wrapped his arms around your waist pulling you closer to him. “He would be rolling in his grave seeing us now.” Your threw Hux a wicked grin, before pressing closer once again.

 

Your words however were true. Your father had never approved of Hux and your relationship. Although he merely thought you two to be friends, who only just started to develop a romantic interest in each other - little did he know that by that time, the two of you had not had a platonic relationship for quite some time. It had always infuriated you hearing your father’s backhanded compliments he would give Hux and his father over dinner and even worse, the way he talked about them once they were gone. Armitage’s father was a Lieutenant Commander of the Galactic Empire, who had frequent business on Eufornis, causing the whole Hux family to spend quite a lot of time on your planet. As a quest of the Galactic Empire, the family resided in the palace, which formed the ideal base for you and Armitage to become friends when you were only little. Over time however, that friendship turned to something a little bit more.

 

Once Armitage had made his romantic interest known to your father - his intention to court you - your father had simply laughed into his face and with a speech about how he was not worthy enough to become the husband of an empress, he send him away. With a short stop in your quarters to explain the situation, Hux completely left Eufornis. Working his way up the ranks of the First Order - now that the Galactic Empire had fallen and with it Armitage’s father. Only to return years later, as the man he was now. By now however, your father had joined his father in presumably the void. Leaving no-one to stand in your way, apart from Baniss. Your father’s trusty advisor, who even after your father’s death, tried to keep the two of you apart, but not anymore with him taken care of, there was no one left in your way.


	7. Arrival

It had been nearly two days now since the search for Baniss started. You had taken a leave from the throne room, claiming you were too distressed, when in reality you were freaking out about everyone finding out. Pacing in your study you tried your best to not bite your nails. You had been approached by Ackbar and Ematt, the two informed you about their departure and that the new delegation would arrive later on and would continue with helping the search. You had felt the slightest of relief when they announced their departure, but anxiety filled your body when they mentioned the new delegation. Said delegation had arrived this morning. Statura had remained on Eufornis to greet their replacement and get them up to date, before they officially met you in the throne room. Hux had been present as well and his demeanour changed the second the new delegation had entered the room. A girl and two men, one of which seemed a bit frazzled to see Hux was present.

 

The three were introduced to you as Rey, Finn and Poe. The three offered you their condolences to the recent loss of your father and now the disappearance of your advisor. You could see Finn eyeing Hux, who simply remained standing in the corner, watching the meeting. With the tension between the two males growing, you found yourself getting more and more anxious, until you finally excused yourself. Rey and Poe tried to comfort you by informing you that they would immediately help your own men with the search, while Finn was still in a stare down with the general. Giving Poe and Rey a thankful nod, you left. Once you had turned the corner you broke into a run, trying to get away from everyone as quick as possible. You had found Ailla in your study and quickly dismissed her. As much as you loved your maid at this moment you did not want to be in anyone’s company, who had not witnessed what you had done.

 

Being around people who had not been present during that night, always put you on edge, you felt like any second you could take the wrong step and all of Eufornis Major would know, something you couldn’t afford. Amongst Hux, Notaka and Naiad however you were at ease, the three knew all there was to know and there was nothing wrong you could do anymore. Hearing the door open and close, you were ready to tell them to leave at once, only when you turned around and came face to face with Hux an sense of relief washed over you. Approaching the general you wrapped your arms around his waist, burying your face in his chest. You felt his arms wrapped around your body, one hand coming to rest in your hair, while the other drew comforting circles on your back. “I don’t think I can do this for much longer.” You mumbled, your hands clutching his uniform. “Give it a few more days and then even they will give up.” Hux reassured you, leaving a kiss on your temple, before he rested his head on top of yours.

 

* * *

 

Hux turned out to be wrong however, when even a week later, the new delegation had not given up. You could see that even he was getting agitated with the three, even more so when during a meeting in the throne room, Finn asked to talk to you in private. Hux glared a the former stormtrooper, while he remained where he had stood - he would not leave until you agreed. You let out sigh, before you nodded. Hux continued glaring at Finn, while he, Rey and Poe left the throne room. “What is it?” You came straight to the point, your patients was running out and you felt like they were overstaying their welcome. “Your highness, I am sorry to be so forward, but I feel like you might be keeping the wrong company.” You raised your eyebrow in question waiting for the male to continue. “Does it not seem awfully suspicious to you, that your father dies and shortly after the First Order arrives at your doorstep?” You eyed Finn, while you took a moment to figure out how to answer.

 

“They wanted to ensure that under the new rule, Eufornis would still remain an ally to them. This does not seem suspicious to me.” You finally answered, while you tried to maintain a neutral tone to your voice. “And soon after your advisor vanishes with no trace at all, as if he had not existed.” Your brows furrowed as you took in his words, was he trying to insinuate what you thought he was? Was he really trying to pin all of this on the First Order? “What are you trying to insinuate here?” You questioned, your eyes narrowing slightly. “Maybe, your highness, your advisor is not missing but instead dead somewhere. Maybe he was seen as a thread and was taken care off.” Your eyes widened, as you tried to pretend to be shocked by such a thought. “Who would do such a thing?” You exclaimed your hand reaching your heart, while you pretend to level out your breathing. “Seeing as Baniss was keen on throwing away the alliance with the First Order, the culprit could be closer to your highness than you might have thought.” Finn tried to explain his train of thoughts, while you continued to pretend to be in utter shock about the situation.

 

“Does it not seem weird to you, your highness, that the general himself seems to linger here, while the captain and the knights have already left?” You clenched your jaw, knowing that the knights had left to get rid of Baniss's body, while Phasma had returned to inform Ren and Snoke about the situation. You pretended to think about the situation and after a moment, you rose from your throne and took a couple of steps down. “Finn, you have made me think about a couple of people I had seen as my allies and confidants. I confess that a lot of what you have said does make sense. Please give me the night to consider my next move and I will seek you out tomorrow to inform you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh dear, oh dear


	8. Faith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's so short, I'm sorry! But it seemed like a good point to stop.

“An interesting turn of events has happened.” Hux jumped slightly at the sound of your voice, turning his head to face you, a cigarette still placed between his lips. Raising an eyebrow in question, the general turned around to face you completely. Stepping through the doorway, you joined the general on the balcony attached to his quarters. “I was approached by one of the resistance who has a feeling that the First Order might be involved in the disappearance of my trusted advisor Baniss.” Hux pulled a mock shocked face, before he wrapped an arm around your waist pulling you closer. “Truly? That is a bold assumption.” He narrowed his eyes slightly and you could him thinking about every possible way to contain this. Placing a kiss on his lips, you pulled him out of his thoughts. “I have an idea that might be useful to the both of us however.” You gave him a cheeky smirk, while he grew intrigued. “And what is that idea, my empress?”

 

* * *

 

“Thank you for meeting with me, Finn.”You looked around worriedly, before you stepped closer to the former stormtrooper. “After you disclosed your thoughts, I started to realise that you are indeed right. The First Order had been an ally to my father and I therefore assumed them to be my ally was well. But now I come to realise that they just use me as a puppet and slowly started to take over the reign of Eufornis.” You placed your hadn’t on your heart, while you started to pace around the gardens. You had asked Finn to meet you there instead of the throne room, scared that the First Order might have infiltrated it with some else than just Hux. “I’m not sure who to trust anymore.” You confessed, holding back a sob as you looked up at the resistance fighter, collapsing onto one of the stone benches under the cherry blossom trees.

 

You could see that Finn was torn about what to do, so when he asked to consult with the other two representatives you agreed, after asking several time if he truly trusted them with this. If it would turn out that they were with the First Order it could be fatal for the both of you. After asking you to wait in the gardens, Finn run off to get Rey and Poe. When he had first confessed his thoughts to you, he did not think that you would actually believe him, he thought the three of them would either end up dead or that you would kick them out, but here you were nearly sobbing in the gardens, asking him for help. He had informed Rey and Poe before about his suspicion and that he had told you about it as well. While Rey had scolded him and called him an idiot. Poe had tried to work out how to get out of the situation, although none of his scenarios had involved you actually believing them. When Finn had voiced said observation, Rey had just glared at him, informing him about the decades old alliance Eufornis had had with the dark side, as well as the influence Hux seemed to have on you.

 

Finn was trying to catch his breath once he reached the entrance to the palace, trying to seem as normal as possible. His breath caught in his throat however, when a certain ginger turned the corner. He was accompanied by a strawberry blond man, who was covered in tattoos. The two of them seemed to be in deep conversation, when Hux’s eyes flickered up and settled on Finn. The gaze, that been calm and cold before turned into a glare that could have killed. Trying to hurry past the two men, Finn cursed all his luck, when the general stopped him. “Have you seen the empress by any chance?” An ice cold shiver run down his spin, while panic started to set in. He saw the tattooed man’s head tilting to the side slightly, while he observed Finn a bit closer, meanwhile Hux continued to glare at him. “No, I haven’t.” Finn applauded himself on the inside for sounding so calm, but instantly grew worried again when the strawberry blonde’s eyes narrowed. “If you’ll excuse me.” Finn turned to continue his way down the corridor, cringing slightly, when Hux called after him to inform the empress he was looking for her if he does see her.

 

To say his heart was beating a mile per minute was an understatement. Finn could not remember when had been the last time he had felt so scared in his life. The escape from the Finalizer had been scary, but a lot more adrenaline had been pumping through his veins at the time, leaving him braver than he felt he was. Sinking down the door, once it was close, he tried to calm himself, while Poe and Rey stood in front of him worried. “You are not going to believe this.” He mumbled, causing both of them to look at him in confusion and concern. He quickly filled them in on everything, while their faces went from shock to disbelief to worry and all three of them concluded that they needed to get the empress away from Eufornis as soon as possible, but not before outing Hux and the First Order for who they truly were: Murders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arian makes his first appearance!


	9. Departure

The sound of a marching army filled the air, while you were standing on the balcony facing the front gardens. The First Order was leaving Eufornis Major after the accusations had been made public. It had been quite a show for the court and all those who had been present in the throne room at the time. The glare Hux had thrown your way had a shiver running down your spin, but this was what was best for everyone involved. The glare he had sent Finn's way however was a completely different story. Now seeing the First Order depart, left you a bit uneasy. You officially made them your enemy now and your safety and the safety of your people now laid in the hand of the Resistance.

 

You were pulled out of your thoughts when Ailla approached from behind. “The general asks to have a word with you, your highness, before his departure.” Ailla had been a bit wary of you the last few days, as much as she had tried to hid it, you had known her for long enough to spot it. She had obviously known how fond you were of Hux and the sudden change had left her confused and suspicious of your plans. She did however express her approval to get rid of the First Order, especially now that it was known what they had taken Baniss’s life. You had started to wonder if there had been anything going on between the maid and your advisor, but couldn’t dwell on it for long, as Finn, Poe and Rey had interrupted the moment.

 

Acknowledging Ailla’s words, you ordered her to let Hux know that he should meet you in the gardens, before you made your way there yourself. You hadn’t been in the gardens for long, when you heard someone clearing their throat. Turing you found Hux standing in the entrance, keeping his distance. Beckoning him over with a movement of your hand, you lowered yourself onto one of the marble benches, waiting for the general to approach. “This is it then?” His voice made you look up, he was still standing, his hands behind his back. Much more the general now than he had ever been when the two of you had been alone. “It appears so.” Raising slowly, you didn’t like the feeling of him looking down at you. “For now.” You stated, placing your hand on his chest.

 

Picking up the hand you had placed on his chest, Hux pressed a kiss to the inside of your wrist, before his eyes connected with yours. “Until I see you again then, empress.” He inclined his head in goodbye, before he pulled away. He hadn’t brought much distance between the pair of you, when you lunged forward, pressing your lips to his. It only took a second for him to return the kiss. Wrapping his arms around you, he was holding on to you tightly, neither of you actually wanting to part, but knowing that you had no other choice. Your hands run up his neck, until your fingers tangled themselves in his hair. The kiss seemed to last for eternity before the both of you pulled away. “I’ll miss you.” You confessed, your voice barley above a whisper. Instead of answering straightaway, Hux pulled you into another kiss, this one just as heated and lengthy as the one before, only broken a few times with mumbled promises, coming from the both of you.

 

* * *

 

The once calm Eufornis Major adopted a feeling of unease after the First Order had left. None of its inhabitants - except for a few - trusting the Resistance to hold its own against the First Order, should they come and everyone knew that they would come eventually. You were leaning on the banister of one of the palace’s many balconies, looking over Eufornis, when you saw it. A fleet of ships descending on the planet.You knew those ships and you knew what they meant. The First Order had finally come. After month of being on edge, now had come the time for Eufornis to tip over. Not wasting a moment, you turned to raise alarm. As soon as you turned however, you came face to face with a familiar chrome stormtrooper.

 

“I’m here to take you prisoner, empress.” Phasma informed you, before handing her blaster over to the stormtrooper behind her, while she got out the handcuffs. You looked at her in disbelief, before you glanced behind you - too high to jump. Looking around frantically, trying to find a way to get out of this situation, you sighed in relief when you noticed Rey and Poe taking out the stormtroopers behind Phasma. The look of relief on your face had the captain turning around in confusion only to knocked out with the handle of Poe’s blaster. “Your highness.” The pilot winked at you, before offering his hand, which you grabbed instantly, allowing the two to pull you away and into the hanger.

 

The three of you were approaching their ship, when you dug your heels in. “Where are you taking me?” You pulled you arm from Poe’s grip and crossed your arms over your chest. “With all due respect, your highness, as far away from Eufornis as possible.” Poe took a step closer, trying to pull you along once again. “I can’t leave my people behind.” You twisted and turned, trying to get the pilot to let go of you. “Their best bet is to capitulate. The First Order won’t destroy Eufornis Major, you are their number one weapon producer. That’s why they are here, your highness.” You looked at him in a lost and hopeless manner, before finally with a nod allowing him to pull you onto their ship.

 

You were looking out of one of the viewports, when the ship started up, ready to leave the hanger, just when a familiar red head entered, accompanied by a man dressed completely in black. Your eyes locked with Hux, you were almost tempted to order them to turn around and run back to him, but you knew leaving Eufornis was for the best. At least for now.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kylo gets involved yaaay!


	10. NOT A NEW CHAPTER JUST PERSONAL UPDATE

Hi guys

I'm really sorry this is not a new chapter but I want to explain to you why there has been a lack of new chapters and why there will possibly be a lack for the next few weeks.

 

At the beginning of May I finished uni and started a placement. Now at first the placement seemed amazing and I loved the work. I still love the work itself but I began to realise that the environment was and is not the greatest. Only a few weeks after starting the placement I got chest pains. Now at first I decided to just wait a bit to see if it would pass or not. It didn't. In fact it rather seemed to get worse over time especially when I was trying to fall asleep (too much time to think) and when I was at work. It finally got to a point where I had myself freaked out so much that I decided to go to a doctor. They took my blood pressure and all that jazz, checked my lungs and so on and nothing. My heart and lungs are working just as they should and instead the pain was caused by anxiety and stress from work or rather me dreading to go there.

 

I have to say I'm very relieved to know that I am physically fine and that alone has almost made the pain disappear! This pain however has also affected me quiet a lot in other ways. I felt rather halfhearted lately and didn't want to do much, partially also because I was too scared to do these things. One of them being writing. I know myself that all this anxiety is ridiculous and makes like no sense, but I can't help feeling it anyway.

 

Good news though, I will be leaving this placement very soon I am already looking for a new one and hopefully I will be back to normal very soon! I don't know when the next chapters will be up, but I promise I will not abandon this story and at the latest there will be a new chapter up at the end of August!

 

I hope you understand and I am sorry for this break but I feel like it is for the best, not only for me but the stories as well! No one wants an half-assed excuse of a chapter, right?

 

All the best and much love!!

Xx M


	11. Suprises

It felt like it took ages until the ship finally reached the Resistance base. You had spend most of the time looking out of the viewport, enjoying the stars zooming by, while you idly fiddled with the fabric of your dress. Once the ship had landed, you were greeted by a woman as well Ailla. You looked at your maid in confusion, you had not seen her for several weeks. Although she had approved of your decision to break your ties with the First Order, she had left Eufornis Major not a few days after. Like a rat jumping a sinking ship. You had felt betrayed when your maid had left and now you felt irritated and confused at seeing her standing in front of you. Although it gave you an idea, why she had always disapproved of the First Order and Hux. You gasped slightly, thinking about all the secrets and information she must have overheard, during your conversations with the general and how much information she handed over to the Resistance. Were you partially responsible for any of the failed missions?

 

You were so tangled in your own thoughts, that you had not realised that someone had addressed you. “Your highness?” Poe’s voice brought you back and you looked at the pilot, who looked rather concerned. “You seemed to have spaced out a bit.” He gave you cheeky smile, when he realised he had your attention. “Forgive me” You mumbled, before turning back to Ailla and the other woman. The two of them had entered the ship and were standing together with Rey and Poe in a half circle around you. Quickly rising to you feet, you looked to the strange woman, waiting to be introduced. “General Organa, this is Eufornis Major’s young empress” Ailla started, but was quickly interrupted by Organa herself. “I know, I have met her before, when she was just barely five years old.” She offered you a kind smile and your tried to remember, but you couldn’t. “You used to play with my little boy in the gardens, always driving Han and Baniss crazy.” She smiled fondly at the memory, but you could see the smile falter at the mention of her son and then the sad look that followed by mention of Han. You offered her a sad smile, reaching for her hand to give it a comforting squeeze. You did not remember meeting her, but you remember the boy with his dark brown locks, who would chase you around the palace, the two of you a giggling mess, while Baniss tried to scold you for your inappropriate behaviour.

 

“Come on, darling. You must be exhausted.” It had been Ailla’s voice who dragged you from your thoughts. She reached for your hand, but you moved away, wary of her and her intentions. You had lost trust in the person, you had thought you could always trust. You flinching away from the maid’s touch had not gone unnoticed by the other three standing in the ship and before Ailla could say anything or make a move, Organa stepped in. “Let me take you to your room.” She smiled, before she commenced walking out of the ship and into the base. You quickly followed her, throwing one last glance over your shoulder to see if Ailla was following or not. She wasn’t and a sense of relief washed over you. Turning back, you found general Organa waiting for you at the hangar’s door.

 

“How long has Ailla been part of the Resistance?” The pair of you had been walking for a while, through a labyrinth of corridors, which made you feel like you could get lost in them forever. “Since before your father died. She and Baniss joined us, a few years after your father became an ally of the First Order.” She offered you a small smile, while you simply nodded. The feeling of betrayal made itself at home in your stomach, while so many things started to make sense now. How insistent Baniss had be to cut the ties with the First Order, how disapproving your father had been of Hux, which made you now think that it was mainly due to whatever Baniss made him believe, after all your father had at first been ecstatic at the prospect of you marrying a high ranking First Order official.

 

Leia regarded you with a hint of sympathy and approval. She saw you as someone who had just lost everything, her confidant, her lover, her home and still in her eyes you were standing strong, ready to fight back, after all that is why you were here. Laying her hand on your shoulder, she gave you slight nudge and the two of you continued down the corridor. “Don’t fret, it will all be alright soon.” She gave you one more kind smile, while you simply nodded and the two of you continued down the corridor. Leia watched as once again you got lost in your own thoughts, it made her worry, but Ailla had ensured her that it wouldn’t take you long to get back on your feet. Although Leia wondered how the betrayal of the maid who had basically raised you would affect you.

 

* * *

 

Several days had gone by, most of which you had spend in your room, trying to get your thoughts and emotion in order. Ailla had tried to talk to you several times, but you didn’t want to see her. Leia had unintentionally informed you that Ailla and Baniss had indeed been a couple, which made you feel even worse when you thought back to the night you had repeatedly driven the letter opener into Baniss’s body. A shiver run down your spin, thinking about it and all you wanted was to be in Hux’s arms. Taking a deep breath, followed by a sigh, you pushed yourself off your bed. You were meant to meet with Leia today and give her all the information you had on the First Order. Picking at your nails, you stood in front of the mirror in your room, trying to get your thoughts in order, trying to determine what you should tell the Resistance what you shouldn’t. You had turned your back on the First Order, but your love for Hux was still very much there and you did not want him to be harmed in any way.

 

He had told you about Snoke before, usually in hushed whispers, you could tell that whoever he was he scared Hux. From what you could tell he was his superior and even though Hux had never explicitly said so you had always presumed Snoke to be the supreme leader of the First Order. It left you worried that whatever you would tell Leia in your upcoming meeting, could indirectly hurt Hux, if Snoke was to find out about your relationship with the general and that it had been you who had given the Resistance the information. Taking another deep breath you tried to calm your nerves and decided to give the Resistance information they most likely already had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have just finished my mini series for Young God called The Hunt ( go check it out!) and I currently have three ideas about a new story if you could let me know which one you'd prefer that'd be fab! They are all based on Young God, so if you haven't read that it might be best to read it before reading the new story just so you know all the background information and so on!  
> But now to my ideas, the first one would be a Hux/Arian story, basically the whole Young God series (including The Hunt) from their point of view.  
> The second would be a kind of sequel to Young God, but not with Kylo/Reader as the main characters, but Notaka, who was sent to assassinate someone, but someone beats him to it and he befriends them and takes them back to the palace and they fall in love. In that story Kylo/Reader would make a cameo but Notaka would be the focus.  
> My third idea would be centred around Naiad or Tharja and it would be their point of view of The Hunt and Young God with them falling in love with a First Order medic.
> 
> So take your pick and I will start writing soon!


	12. The Plan

It had been three month since you had first arrived at the Resistance base and you were slowly, very slowly getting used to it. It was not the luxuries you missed from your life at the palace, but more a certain someone. On top of that you were still figuring things out with Ailla and you just felt completely out of place on the resistance base. General Organa and the other three were trying their best to make you feel welcome and at home, but you didn’t miss the side-eye you received from other resistance members, as well as their constant gossiping. All of this unwanted attention had resulted in you mostly staying in your quarters or roaming the forest adjoining the base. In general doing your best at avoiding all resistance members.

 

The resistance were currently trying to form a plan to get Eufornis Major back into your hands. Not only would that help you out, but the resistance as well. Reconquering Eufornis meant taking away the First Orders major weapon producer and making it part of the resistance. You had given all the intel you had on the planet to General Organa, although you felt like it wasn’t much, as you realised that it seemed like you didn’t know all that much about the planet. You were frustrated with yourself and couldn’t help but feel like you came across like a spoiled little girl. Taking a bigger part in the planning of the attack, you were hoping to show people that you were more than just the helpless little empress you came across as.

 

It was after another meeting, that Ailla stopped you in one of the corridors. Her expression had been serious and slightly concerned, as she dragged you along into an empty corridor. You had tried to get out of her grip, but you had also been curious to see what she wanted. “Your highness, are you truly planning on participating during the attack?” You looked at her suspiciously, before you simply nodded. “Indeed I am. My people need to see I am fighting for them!” You ripped your arm from her grip and glared down at the woman. “I’m not sure what you are playing at Ailla, but know this: Once Eufornis is back under my control, you are no longer welcome there.” You hissed at her, before you rushed past her, eager to get away from her as soon as possible. “The Eufornis you will return to will not be the same, you left.” Ailla’s words made you stop. Rolling your eyes you turned back around. “What are you talking about?” You tried to control you voice, but you couldn’t help but clench your fists in anger. “He will have turned your people against you and he will be there, when the resistance attacks. Are you ready to kill Hux?” She had taken several steps towards you, so she was now standing right in front of you. “Are you ready kill the person you claimed to love for such a long time?” You could feel your fingernails digging into your palms, as you tried to stay calm. “You are forgetting your place.” You bit out, glaring down at the woman. “Do not ever speak with me again.” You seethed, before you turned around and left, not stopping until you had reached your quarters.

 

You picked up your datapad and with a quick look at the time, decided to take a walk. You felt the eyes of the resistance members on you, but you pushed forward until you had reached the tree line of the forest. Looking back at the base, you saw a few resistance members and decided to walk a bit further, until finally the base and any resistance member were out of sight. Sinking down onto the ground, you tapped on the datapad, until you had established a secure hologram line and a familiar face started to hover in the air in front of you. “General.” A smile was tugging on your lips, while Hux had a smirk of his own on his lips. “You highness.” The ginger inclined his head slightly in greeting, the smirk still on his lips. “Any news?” You could hear and see him moving, making you wonder slightly what he was up to. “The attack is planned and it should take place a week from now. They are planning to invade the palace first and then slowly taking over the planet.” You could see him nodding, contemplating the plan. “It actually seems a half decent plan with a potential to actually work.” A smile was playing on your lips, while you watched Armitage being equally impressed and annoyed with the resistance plan. “They might have had some help.” You shrugged, causing Hux’s eyes to flicker back to you. “That would certainly explain, why it is a good plan.” He grinned.

 

“There is another piece of information. Something I have learned over time here on the base.” You could see Hux’s eyebrows furrow in confusion, when you didn’t just tell him the piece of information. “Something I do not believe wise to share over hologram.” The frown on his face deepened when he realised how serious you were. “We have to set up a meeting then.” He finally spoke, while you nodded in agreement. The rustle of leaves caught your attention. “Someone is coming. Send me the coordinates and a time and I will be there.” Not waiting for an answer you shut down the datapad, before opening one the plans of the palace, while you waited for the person approaching to make themselves known. You relaxed slightly when a random resistance member stepped out of the foliage, but the moment of relaxation didn’t last long once his words registered in your mind. “Your highness, General Organa would like a word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have now decided on the next story in my Young God series so if you are interested the first chapter will be up today and the story is called 'Whatever it takes' I hope you read it and enjoy it!


	13. The Handover

Your heart had been racing beyond belief while you had made your way back to the base with the resistance member. Millions of scenarios going through your head, as you tried to figure out what General Organa wanted to talk about. You were hoping it would just be the usual drilling about Eufornis' palace and the best way to infiltrate it. Not that you ever really gave her all the information, just enough to keep her and Ailla happy and off your trail. In the end - despite all your worrying - it had been exactly that, another drilling session.

Your heart was racing and the adrenaline was still pumping through your veins as you made your way back to your quarters. Glancing behind you, you could see Ailla still standing in the door eying you suspiciously. You met her eyes for a brief moment before you turned around and continued down the corridor.

As you entered your quarters, your datapad alerted your to a new message through an obnoxious beep. Glancing down you saw that the message had been sent by an unknown sender, containing a series of numbers. You soon realised they were the coordinates you had instructed Hux to send before the two of you had been interrupted. Pulling up a map on your datapad, you entered the coordinates - Dantooine. A planet in the outer rim, you had never really heard about the planet and if you did, it did not leave an impact big enough for you to actually remember the planet. After a bit of research, you discovered that the planet was almost the complete opposite of Eufornis, with lush forests covering most of the planet's surface.

It was three days later when you sneaked your way into the hanger of the resistance's base. Once again adrenaline was pumping through your body, while you tried to keep an eye out for Ailla or General Organa, but also trying to come up with a reason, should you get caught. You spotted an A-Wing at the edge of the hangar, which would allow you a quick exit with hardly anyone noticing. You inched closer to the vessel, grabbing a ladder on the way to make your way up into the cockpit. You didn't hesitate for a second before you jumped up the steps, hurrying to get on your way.

"Your Highness," You froze, a feeling of dread washing over you, as you turned around to face the person who had spoken up. Twisting your torso, you spotted Finn at the bottom of the ladder. You had hardly seen any member of the trio since your arrival on the base. "What are you doing?" A furrow had taken space on his face, while the observed you. You inhaled deeply before a smile took over your face to make. "I have not flown for ages and I thought I might just give it a go now." Your friendly smile did not seem to help convince Finn, as he still seemed to be rather suspicious of you. "I might also be trying to avoid all the fuss people would make if I put in a request to fly during the day." You replaced your friendly smile with a sheepish one, which seemed to do the trick. Finn nodded before he took a step back. "In that case, be careful your majesty." You gave him a nod before you stepped into the cockpit and Finn moved away. You didn't hesitate before you started the A-Wing, waving at Finn before you took off.

You were still trying to calm your heart down when you were halfway to Dantooine. But soon you found yourself chuckling at how easy it was for you to convince the former stormtrooper. Shaking your head at your own luck for him being the one to catch you, you soon saw the lush green planet coming into your view and your heart started racing for a whole different reason.

Landing on the planet, your heart sunk slightly when you spotted a peach haired female accompanied by Kylo Ren. You had been looking forward to reuniting with Hux, but also felt relieved that he had not made the journey and instead was save on Eufornis or the Finalizer. You took a moment to observe a female, trying to figure out who it was. Her peach hair was decorated with braids, some of which were embellished with beads and silver rings. The lower half of her face was covered by a black mask and a scarf was wrapped around her neck, trailing down to the ground. Her choice of weapons - a throwing knives belt wrapped around her thigh and two virboblades crossed over her lower back - made you realise who she was: Jiho Maru. You had grown up with her, her grandfather had been an influential general of the Empire, who had been a good friend of your father. After the fall of the Empire, the Maru family had settled on Eufornis and became an integrated part of Eufornis' court. Over time you had grown to be glad to have her as a friend, she was witty and loyal. You, however, felt bad for Jiho, as her father and grandfather put her through a training that would put the stormtrooper training to shame. However, over time it seemed like the training had paid off. Jiho had become the Knight of Ren that was the closest to Kylo - with loads of rumours around their actual relationship.

So even though you felt a bit down for missing a chance to reunite with Hux, you were still happy to reunite with an old friend. Climbing out of the A-wing a smile grew on your face as your wrapped Jiho into a hug. "It must have been years since I have last seen you!" You tightened your arms around the peach haired female. "Two I believe to be exact!" Jiho squeezed you before letting go. Ren stood behind Jiho eyeing your reunion in a rather bored manner. "I think we should get to the point before those scums get suspicious." His mechanical voice rung through the silent forest, resulting in Jiho and you stepping away from each other. You stepped towards the commander, pulling a datapad from your pocket. "I put all the information on this, hand it over to Hux please."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I am introducing a new character here: Jiho. She is actually the main character of Young God.


	14. The Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are a bunch of chapters coming your way over the next few days/weeks cause I feel bad for not posting for so long! I had a writer finish one of my favourite stories halfway through for no apparent reason and it annoyed me quite a bit and then I realised I was doing the same, so I really want to finish this story.

The way back to the resistance base was rather uneventful. You had still been a bit giddy about seeing Jiho again. A smile taking over your face, when you remembered Kylo stepping back to give the two of your a few more moments to catch up, before the three of your left Dantooine.

You were on an all high when you landed, a big smile still plastered on your face. However, the smile fell when you stepped out of the hangar and into one of the corridors that would lead to your quarters. Your body froze, anxiety coursing through your body as you came face to face with Ailla. The maid had her eyes narrowed at you, while her arms were crossed over her chest. "Where have you been your highness?" She spat out, while she stepped closer to you. You eyed her waiting for her to give away how much she knew. "I have been out for a fly." She narrowed her eyes even more, while she cornered you against the wall behind you. "Where to?" You remained silent, not wanting to give away where you had gone, plus you were aware that by now too much time had passed for you to give a believable answer.

"You have been to see him, haven't you?" Her voice rose in pitch and when you looked away, she grabbed your jaw forcing you to look at her. "You were with that ginger rat!" She accused you, her fingernails further digging into your skin, to the point that you were just waiting for them to hit the bone. "I have not seen Hux since I've told him to leave Eurfonis." You answered the brown-haired woman, while a look of disgust flashed over her features. "Do you really think I'm going to believe that? The two of you could never stay apart for long." The maid hissed at you, using the hand that was clutching your jaw to push your head back, resulting in your head hitting the wall with a loud thud.

By now a group of resistance member had been attracted by the ruckus caused by the two of you. The group eyed the two of confused and seemed to be wondering if they needed to step in or not. A wave of shock washed through them at the maid's next words. "You are here as his personal spy aren't you, your highness?" The last two words especially were full of venom, as the maid seemed to have been taken over by anger. "I had to flee my planet, how dare you suggest I'm working with the people who dare threaten my life." You bit out, moving your jaw becoming harder due to how sore it was with Ailla still digging her nails into it. "It must be a well thought out plan made by the pair of you, so the Final Order can finally get rid of the resistance." Her hand moved down from your jaw to your throat, her grip however not easing up in the slightest.

Another commotion drew everyone's attention when someone pushed their way through the crowd of resistance members. "Let her go, Ailla." General Organa's voice filled the corridor, causing your head and Ailla's to snap in her direction. "She is the one responsible for Baniss' death!" The maid spat, her hold on your throat tightening. "Her and that despicable general!" She shrieked, pulling you towards her before she quickly pushed you back. Your head once again hitting the wall behind you with a loud thud, making a couple of resistance members cringe at the noise. "You seduced that ginger into killing my Baniss!" A sob tore through Ailla, before once again her hand tightened around your throat making it almost impossible for you to breath. Gasping for breath, your hands wrapped around Ailla's, scratching to try and loosen her grip around your throat.

"Ailla, stop it now." Once again General Organa warned the old maid. But to no avail, her grip did not falter, instead, she pushed you once again into the wall before she was suddenly flung away from you. Finn and Poe stood behind her, their hands on her shoulder holding her back. You doubled over, your own hand moving up to your throat trying to soothe the burning feeling. "Take her away. I want to see you in the morning, go to the infirmary to have that throat looked at" General Organa order before she turned around and left the scene. Once Ailla was dragged away and the general had retreated the resistance members seemed to have lost interest in the situation and quickly made their way back to their quarters. Meanwhile, you were still kneeling on the floor, your hand still on your throat, as you recovered from your - now former - maid's attack.

As soon as the corridor was empty once more, you rushed to your quarters, packing everything you needed you sent a quick message to Hux before you nearly sprinted out of the base. You had made the decision to leave. You did not want to remain even on the same planet as Ailla anymore. Of course, you knew she had been right to a point. You had not seduced Hux into killing Baniss, but you were responsible for his death. And no matter what you knew that the situation between you and Ailla would never get back to normal and you were scared that her influence with General Organa would lead to them finding out the truth, so you decided to leave. It would prove that Ailla had been right about you, but by the time they would notice you were gone, you would have put enough distance between you and the base. You had briefly contemplated about taking one of the ships from the hangar, but figured it would be too easy for them to track you that way and instead concluded that moving on foot to the next trading post would give you a better chance of escaping unnoticed.


	15. The Escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last one for today! Next few chapter will be up latest on Monday!

You were lost. You had no problem admitting that. You had found a merchant who had taken you away from D'Quar, but now you were stranded on a planet you didn't even know. The merchant's ship had broken down, forcing them to land on a random planet. When the merchant and his crew realised that would not be of use to them in this scenario, they turned on you, resulting in you stunning two of them with a blaster, before you bolted. Now, however, you were in the middle of a small forest. You had already crossed some rocky terrain and now between the few trees, you could spot a lake. You were exhausted but you had no choice but to keep going. You could not the merchant and his crew catch up with you and instead, you had to find a way off this planet. 

In the short message you had sent Hux before leaving D'Quar, you had told him you would make your way back to Eufornis, but as so far, you didn't think you made it very far. Sighing, you leaned against one of the trees, sinking to the ground to get a bit of rest, before making your way to the lake. You rested your head in your hands, the urge to cry making your eyes fill with tears. You sniffed as you thought about everything that had happened since your father had died and how everything had turned into an incredible mess. Originally when your father had died, you had thought that now you could finally be with Hux. You had never been close with your father, he had always been quite a distance as he was busy with his duties as Emporer. So, in the end, you didn't mourn as much as you probably should have, which made you feel guilty. But you were quickly distracted from the guilt with all the events that unfolded over the time. 

Letting out a deep sigh, you pushed yourself off the ground and continued walking. It turned out that the lake was quite shallow so you decided to walk through to save time. You felt your energy draining with every step you took, but you were determined to make it off this planet and back to Eufornis. As you finally stepped out of the water, you froze in horror, you had only briefly glanced at your legs, but after closer inspection, you shuddered even more. A handful of leeches had attached themselves to your calves. You felt your knees becoming jelly-like, bucking slightly before you caught yourself on a rock. Sitting down, you looked at the black leeches, trying to come up with a plan of action to remove those nasty creatures from your body. 

You were close to giving up on everything - thoughts of laying down on the ground and just never getting up again, making themselves at home in your mind - when the rustling of foliage caught your attention. 

\- 

Hux was pacing the bridge of the Finalizer, the feeling of unease amongst the other First Order officers making the atmosphere almost unbearable. Ren and Jiho stood in the doorway, watching the ginger ask the communications officer for the umpteenth time if there has been another message. The way his fist clenched, even more, confirming that there has been no news about your whereabouts. Spotting the two knights, the General made his way over to the two of them. "She should be here by now." Hux started pacing again, this time in front of the two knights. "Indeed, it doesn't take that long to travel from the outer rim to Eufornis." Ren confirmed before he turned around and simply left, leaving a stunned Jiho and Hux behind him. Hux sighed before he rushed to catch up with the commander. "Ren, you know I never ask you for a favour and I would never do so unless I felt like it was the only way." The word 'favour' had stopped the knight, his curiosity peeked by the possibility to have the General indebted to him. "Go on." The mechanical voice echoed through the corridor, as Jiho finally caught up with them. "Send out the knights to find her." 

Ren let out a contemplating sound. He had actually already decided to send out some of the knights when he had left the bridge, but he truly did enjoy seeing Hux squirm. "Please" The General bit out, his body rigid and his fist clenched showing how uncomfortable he was with asking the knight for a favour - especially one which could be deemed more personal. "Jiho, get Arian and Notaka and go find her." Ren ordered, resulting in a nearly inaudible 'thank you' from Hux.


	16. The Rescue

You shifted your torso to see what had caused the noise, ready to sprint behind the big boulder next to you - even though you had a feeling that your legs would not be able to carry you. Your whole body was tense, ready to jump into action, but it quickly deflated when you saw a familiar strawberry blond accompanied by a peach haired female and a white-haired male, step out of the foliage. 

Releasing a sigh, a small smile of relief managed its way onto your face. "Arian, Jiho, Notaka." You greeted the three knights, who seemed just as relieved that they had found you. "Your Highness" Arian nodded, his strawberry blond hair moving with the motion. "Let's get off this planet and back to the Finalizer," Notaka suggested, waiting for you to finally stand up. Pushing yourself off the stone, your legs wobbled slightly, resulting in all three knights quickly stepping forward, ready to catch you. Eyeing your legs, Jiho released a gasp. "Your Highness, are those...leches?" Notaka runs a hand through his pearly white hair before he kneeled down to closely examine the blood-sucking monsters. "Notaka, let's remove them on the ship. Carry her for now." Arian ordered. Notaka gave him a nod, before he turned around, so you could climb onto his back. 

The journey back to the ship was rather uneventful, you informed the three knights about what had happened. Notaka and Arian expressed their relief that nothing worse had happened and how impressed they were with how you had managed the situation, while Jiho was grumbling about how she had never liked Ailla and how incompetent the Resistance was to not step in when an empress was insulted and attacked right in front of them. Their reactions made you feel a lot calmer and at ease, knowing that knights of Ren were impressed with you made you feel proud - even though you figured that they probably didn't expect much from someone who had grown up as shielded and as luxurious as you had. 

Once you had entered the ship, Notaka placed you down in one of the seats, while Jiho left to send a message to the Finalizer and Arian sat down in front of you opening a first aid kit. Gently prying each leech of your skin, the strawberry blond tried to distract you by telling you that you had actually ended up on the mid-rim planet Aleen and how fortunate you had been not to fall into the planet's underworld, in which you would have died due to its non-oxygen atmosphere. Arian's continuous talking did help in distracting you, but you couldn't help but think that you would have prefered if the strawberry blond would have chosen a different subject. 

"10 minutes until landing." Notaka's voice rung through the small ship, cause a spark of excitement to light up your body. Looking out of the viewport, you could see the Finalizer coming closer. It would be your first time aboard the ship and you were a bit nervous as you had never been in a setting where you were the First Order's guest, not the other way around. Most of the contact you had had with the First Order was on Eufornis and mostly consisted of Hux, Phasma, Ren and some of the knights. This would be your first time being up close to the stormtroopers and other First Order officials. 

You had been so absorbed in your thoughts, that you had not realised the ship landing until Jiho gently shook you out of your trance. "Let's go, your highness." The peach haired female offered you smile before you pushed yourself up to stand. As you walked down the ramp, you could already see Hux and Ren waiting. "Your Highness, it is good to have you back." Ren's mechanical voice filled the space, as he bowed his head slightly. "Thank you." You offered him a small smile. The knight nodded before he turned around and left the scene along with the other knights, leaving you with Hux in the middle of the hangar. 

"Come on." The ginger's words caught you a bit off guard you had expected something a bit more heartfelt, instead, Hux had turned around and was halfway to the door, when you finally caught up with him. At first, you felt a bit hurt, as it seemed like the general was giving you the cold shoulder, but after further contemplation, you figured it might just be because he did not want your reunion to be seen by anyone else. 

Your thoughts were proven right, when Hux opened to door to what you figured would be your quarters for your stay. Looking around it was all rather minimalistic, but you didn't expect much from a ship that was meant for battle. The walls were a dark grey and the only pop of colour seemed to come from the bright red bed sheet, that you could spot through one of the doorways. You turned to Hux, waiting for him to say something or do something, but as the two of you locked eyes, neither of you moved. Only after some time did the general step towards you pulling you into an embrace. "I was scared I'd never see you again." His arms tightened around your form, pulling you impossibly close to him. "Shh, my love." He mumbled against your temple, before placing a kiss on your forehead. "You are safe now." He pulled away slightly, placing his hands on your cheeks, so he could lock his eyes with yours before he repeated: "You are safe now."


	17. The Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been struggling with this chapter a bit, but I hope you like it anyway!

You had remained in what turned out be Hux's quarter so the rest of the night - even though Hux did not stay with you for the whole night. To say that he despised the Resistance even more now was an understatement. Once you had calmed down, it took a lot of you calming him down, so he wouldn't take the Finalizer to the Resistance base and destroy it. Eventually, after a lot of calming words, Hux relented and agreed to take you back to Eufornis. Something that almost scared you more, how would you explain the back and forth between allies to your people. Thinking back to what had happened you had the feeling it might look like you incompetent and indecisive. Your worrying intensified when it was announced that you would be arriving in Eufornis soon, the speed of your heartbeat was picking up and you took to pacing Hux's quarters, trying to come up with a plan to not make yourself look that bad to your own people.

* * *

 

A feeling of pure discomfort washed over Arian, as he got closer to Hux's quarters. He knew it wasn't the ginger next to him, as he was walking calming and seemed rather excited that things seemed to be going well. "Let Ren know we should be landing soon, I think after the empress has rested, we should come up with a plan to finally get rid of the Resistance, before something happened." Arian nodded, about to turn away, when he felt like he should give the general a bit of a warning. "Sir, no offence, but it seems like the empress seems a bit uncomfortable, anxious even." Hux's eyes widened before he gave the tattooed knight a nod and entered his quarters.

Arian hesitate a second when he witnessed the calm taking over your body as Hux entered the room. A small smile playing on the strawberry blonde's face as he made his way to the Knights' level.

* * *

Your pacing came to halt when you heard the door opening, taking a deep breath to compose yourself, a smile took over your features when Hux stepped into the room. "Darling," Hux smiled, wrapping his arms around your waist, pulling you against him. "We should be landing in Eufornis in less than half an hour." Your smile dropped for a second, your body going ridged as you realised that you would have to face your fears sooner. You had hoped Hux didn't notice, as you had thought you composed yourself rather quickly, but it turned out you were wrong.

His arms tightened around you, his thumbs rubbing comforting circled on your lower back. "What is wrong, my love?"His eyes were locked with yours, as he tried to figure out, why you were feeling so anxious. "After all our plotting to take down the Resistance, I feel like I might have compromised my position as empress." Hux's brows furrowed before he hummed and a small smile tugged on the corner of his lips. "There is nothing to worry about, darling." He pressed a kiss to your temple. "It has all been taken care of." You pulled away looking at the ginger in front of you in confusion. "What do you mean, Armitage?" Your hands reached up, cupping his cheeks with your hands. "We spread the information that the Resistance took you against your will. That they killed Baniss, told you it was the First Order to make sure you would come with them when the time comes."

You looked at Hux in astonishment, before smashing your lips against his. Hux was caught off guard for a second, before his arms wrapped around your waist again, eliminating all space between the two of you. "What would I do without you?" You gasped in-between kisses, quickly pulling the general close enough again to press your lips against him.

It wasn't long after that the two of you had to pull away from each other, as you had finally arrived at Eufornis. With the people believing that the Resistance was responsible for it all, a massive weight had been lifted off you and you felt a lot happier and lighter when you stepped off the ramp. In the distance you could hear your people cheering for your return and a smile found its way onto your face, excitement filling you at the prospect of strolling through the hallways of the palace in a matter of minutes. You smiled at your people and waved, stopping briefly, but continued as you were too excited to be back home.


	18. The Attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I just realised that I never gave a reason for not posting, to be honest, once uni started last week I was a bit too busy, but I thought I would get back to it once I have seen The last Jedi. Unfourntently tho, I was greatly disappointed in the film and did not want to write at all. The way Hux was made into a laughing stock really pissed me off. I don't understand how they could make this character that was compared to space Hitler, into an absolute fool and it just really annoyed me so I just didn't want to write about him (I'm over it now, but thinking about starts to annoy me again :D ). I also think they missed an amazing and interesting story arc, by not letting Rey and Ren team up but oh well.

An overwhelming feeling of content filled you, as you stepped into your own quarters. You felt like you had been gone for ages and the feeling of finally coming home could not be rivalled. With a sigh you dropped down on your bed, the comfort of your own sheets almost lulling you to sleep if it were not for the clearing of a throat. Opening your eyes, you looked over to the source of the sound and found Hux standing in the doorway. He was leaning against the doorframe with his shoulder, his arms crossed over his chest. "Glad to be back?" You smiled while you nodded, stretching slightly in content. 

It took less than a week for things to go back to normal - at least as normal as they could. There was no Baniss bothering you the whole day, instead, your days were filled with stolen moments with Hux - due to both your commitments - and official meeting with the general, due to the Resistance threat. You didn't actually think that they would come after you and neither did Hux, as he had told you, but due to the explanation that had now spread all over Eufornis, you had to keep pretending. The destruction of the Resistance would be beneficial for the First Order, so you did not necessarily mind. 

After your return to the palace, Hux had been sleeping in your quarters. During the first night, you had had a horrific nightmare. A nightmare that even days later was still haunting you. In your nightmares Ailla, the resistance and the merchants had found you before the knights could, Ailla had once again accused you of murdering Baniss, but instead of using just words, she had brought Hux to the front. She made him watch while she repeatedly stabbed you to the point that you were barely hanging on. Ailla didn't, however, did not just finish you off, instead after checking you were still conscious, she turned to Hux and brought the knife to his throat before she could harm him however you woke up. You could however still feel the terror, every time your heart was racing beyond belief, but you had been more than relieved to see Hux by your side, ready to comfort you. After the second nightmare, Hux had insisted on staying at least until the nightmares stopped, but that had yet to happen.

After another day of meetings and talks, you found your way back to your quarters to find Hux standing on the balcony. A small smile played on your lips, as you thought of how domestic the scene looked. He had not spotted you yet, so you quickly and quietly stepped forward, the potential of scaring the shit out of him causing a smirk to form on your lips. You were just about to step onto the balcony, when someone dropped down in front of the doors, their back was turned to you, so they had not spotted you, however with Hux's back turned to both you and the stranger, he had not seen either of you. You scanned the strange, finding a blaster in his hand, you were frozen in shock for a second before you jumped into action. "Hux! Behind you." You shrieked, before you lunged forward, hoping to hit or catch the assassin somehow. However, the assassin had already brought enough distance between the two of you for him to reach you. But your shriek had caught him off guard, as he twisted his torso to look at you, Hux lunged at him, wrapping his hands around the assassin's throat long enough for the man to lose consciousness. 

Neither of you moved for a second, staring down at the unconscious body between the two of you. The sound of doors opening and closing snapped you out of your trance, spinning around to whoever dared to enter your quarters. A sense of relief washed over you as Kylo accompanied by Jiho stepped into the room. "You two really need to stop killing people in your own quarters," Ren commented, the sentence coming out half mechanical, half normal, as he pulled off his mask. "H-he i-isn't dead." You stuttered, turning back to Hux, who was still staring down at the unmoving body. "Right?" Your voice was little, as you looked around the three. Ren shook his head, sensing how much you needed an answer. "Jiho, get Notaka and Tharja, they are to bring the assassin into the prison and guard him. We will question him in the morning." Jiho nodded, turning away to leave the room. Meanwhile, you turned back to Hux, who was still stuck in whatever trance he was in. You stepped closer to him, about to reach out to him when Kylo's voice stopped you.

"I wouldn't." You turned around to look at the knight. "Have you never heard of people having violent reactions when woken up from nightmares or trances?" He sounded almost bored, but you could detect the worry that laced his voice. "Why do you care?" You eyes the knight suspiciously. "I don't want to deal with his whining and pouting because he hurt you." Kylo shrugged before he stepped closer to the general. Meanwhile, a smile took over your face. You had always thought it was amusing how much the two were acting like they hated each other, but actually, they did care about the other at least to a point. 

Kylo reached out his arm, grabbing Hux's shoulder, causing the general's head to snap up before he pushed off Kylo's hand. "We will question the intruder tomorrow morning, take the empress and return to your own quarters." Hux's eyes locked with Kylo. It was clear that he did not like being ordered around by Ren, but he also knew that he was not in a position to think clearly. "Arian and Naiad will be guarding your quarters for the rest of the night." A sense of relief washed over you, a force sensitive knight would be able to tell when an unknown present was intruding. Hux gave a short nod, before he stepped past the body, grabbed your hand and pulled you out of your quarters and down the hallway to his own.


	19. The Revelation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two of my nails broke in a really painful way and my graduation is next week :(  
> Also sorry this chapter is so short, but I'm really tried right now :D

The rest of the night had been restless. Neither you or Hux knew what to do or say, but one thing was for sure, neither of you let the other out of their sight. You were mostly frightened that someone might try again to kill the general, while he seemed to find comfort in your presence. A silver-haired female knight brought the pair of you some food, but neither of you had touched it.

Hux was sitting on the sofa staring out of the ceiling to floor windows, while you were still kind of frozen barely two steps into the room. The realisation had struck you and left you with an uneasy feeling. Thoughts of what would have happened to you had the assassin succeeded and what your life would look like without Hux - boring and painful, were only two of the words that came to your mind - buzzing around your head, making you dizzy. In fact, after some time you could feel your legs starting to wobble, but your body was still frozen, not allowing you to move until your knees finally gave in and you hit the floor. Pain was shooting through your knees - no doubts blue bruises already developing marks on your skin.

The noise created by your body hitting the floor alerted the ginger. Twisting his torso to look over his shoulder, Hux looked at you with worry and shock. Jumping to his feet, the general crossed the room before he knelt down in front of you. His hand wrapping around your cheek, nudging your head up so the two of you came eye to eye. "Are you alright?" Hux knew the words were stupid in this situation, he knew you weren't alright, neither of you was. But it was his way of conveying that he needed you to tell him what was wrong - apart from the obvious. However, you couldn't form the words, so instead, you decided to seek comfort and shelter. Wrapping your arms as tight as possible around his neck, you brought your body close to his, seeking comfort in his warmth. It took Hux only a second before his arms found their way around your waist and his head was buried in your neck.

* * *

 

The rest of the night had otherwise been uneventful, you had woken up once - unsure when you had even fallen asleep - to movement and whispers coming from the corridor, but you had been too drowsy and now you were even questioning if it had been real or simply a dream. Turning around you hoped to find Hux next to you, but it seemed like you were the only one in the room. Slightly disappointed by the ginger's disappearance, you pushed yourself out of bed and made your way to the door. You had to get dressed and continue your work as empress. Pushing open the door, you came face to face with a young dark grey haired male. You quickly realised that he was part of the Knights of Ren, due to his black attire and the mask covering his eyes, making them appear completely white.

You nodded at the young male, before you turned down the corridor, making your way to your own quarters. Hearing footsteps, you turned your head, seeing the grey-haired knight following you. "General and commander's orders, your highness." He informed you with a cheeky smile when he saw the questioning look on your face. "I'm not to let you out of sight." He winked before nodding in the direction the two of you had been going, indicating for you to keep going. Giving another nod, you continued, the males complete disregard of your different standings completely throwing you off. Once you had reached your quarters, he still followed - you first assumed he would simply check for an intruder and then leave, but he remained, standing next to the door.

Walking to your walk-in closet, you once again heard the knight's footsteps, but relief washed over you when he remained outside. Quickly getting changed and ready for the day - which even though you tried to be quick took longer than you would have liked due to your lack of maid, you would have to appoint a new one by the end of the day.

"What is your name?" You were on your way to the throne room, the grey haired male still behind you. "Naiad." The cheeky grin was back on his face but quickly disappeared once the doors to throne room opened and the knight spotted the general and Ren already waiting. As you saw the grin disappearing from Naiad's face you turned around to see what had caused his cheekiness to evaporate. Your own lips twisting into a smile, as you spotted Hux and Kylo waiting for you.


	20. The Promise

Naiad had not followed you into the room, either following orders from the commander or general. You, however, had proceeded into the room and instead of taking your place upon the throne, you came to stand in front of them. There was no one else present so you did not see the need for formality - plus it always started to hurt your neck when you had to keep looking down at people, you just prefer talking to them face to face. "So, did you interrogate them already?" You crossed your arms across your chest, waiting for either male to answer. "We started the questioning." Ren's mechanic voice filled the room, followed by a hiss as the knight pulled off his mask. "Any success?" You inquired, as both of them remained quiet. "Yes." Hux seemed tense, making you worried about what the two of them had learned from the intruder.

"Well, go on then, who sent him?" Your patience was running thin, their hesitance to just tell you what happened grinding on your nerves. Ren took a deep breath, looking at the ginger next to him. Hux meanwhile had locked his eyes with yours, while remaining rather stoic and clearly unwilling to share any information regarding the assassination attempt with you. "For fuck's sake." Ren sighed, causing you to break eye contact with Hux and instead focus on the knight. "He was sent by the resistance." Kylo finally informed you, earning a glare from Hux, while your face was just taken over by surprise. "More accurately your former maid, but as she is working for the resistance, you get where I'm getting at." Your eyes were still wide in shock as you looked at Ren, who seemed rather unbothered by the whole ordeal. As the knight, however, looked to the general, who was still glaring at him, he simply shrugged. He quickly made up an excuse about needing to talk to Jiho and assign the other knights some tasks, before he left Hux and you on your own in the throne room.

"Ailla? Is it true?" You asked Hux after a few minutes of silence. You knew the maid had been angry, but you always thought the anger was directed at you. Ailla had never disliked Hux on a personal level, she had only disliked his affiliation with the First Order or so you had assumed, but clearly, if she was willing to kill him - or rather have him killed - she must have disliked him more than you had thought. "Yes, according to the assassin, it was an attempt to 'get rid of the bad influence'." Hux scoffed, his arms crossed over his shoulder. "Apparently, the resistance is under the impression, that if they can get rid of me, you would magically become their ally." You couldn't help but roll your eyes. Surely, they couldn't assume that you would come back running just because Hux was dead. It made you angry that they just assumed that your affiliation with the First Order was purely based on your love for Hux. This assumption made it seem like you had no opinion for yourself and just followed people like a lovesick puppy. Clenching your fists you turned away from Hux and marched towards one of the windows, hoping that the view would calm you down somewhat.

"It seems to me like Ailla planned this attack only with a handful of resistance members. I highly doubt that any of the higher-ups approved of it, if they did though they are even of a joke than we had first assumed." Hux mocked, as you heard his footsteps coming closer. "We can't just let an attack on one of our guest slide like that." You turned around to face the ginger, who had an eyebrow raised in question. "Once the imperial investigation conducted by the First Order in the name of Eufornis is concluded, I trust the First Order to take all measures needed to see the people responsible for it punished." You tried to remain serious, but as the smile on Hux's face grew, you couldn't help the small smile forming on your own lips. "Is that your approval for us to destroy the resistance?" Hux stepped even closer, one of his hands coming to rest on your cheek. "It is my approval and promise that Eufornis will support the First Order in any way we can."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure how I feel about it, but I felt bad for not posting so here we go!  
> I'll probably go over the whole story and edit it once it is done, I am actually going to start editing 'Young God' today. (That's my Kylo Ren fanfic for everyone who is interested in that ;) )


End file.
